Aims: To revise the syntaxonomy of the vegetation of steppe depressions (pody), in particular (1) to identify the associations and to reveal their environmental, structural and compositional peculiarities; (2) to assign the associations to higher syntaxa; and (3) to correct nomenclatural aspects according to the ICPN.Study area: Steppe zone of Ukraine, Left-Bank of the Lower Dnieper basin.Methods: 641 relevés were included in the final analysis in the PCOrd program integrated into Juice software. Two expert systems (EVC and EUNIS-ESy) were used to assign relevés to vegetation classes and to EUNIS units.Results: The analysis resulted in nine clusters, which were interpreted asFestuco-Brometea(two units),Molinio-Arrhenatheretea(three units),IsoŃ‘to-Nanojuncetea(three units) and one derivate community of theFestuco-Puccinellietea. Detailed characteristics of the species composition, structure, distribution, and environmental conditions are provided for each unit. According to the DCA ordination, the leading factors of the syntaxa differentiation are soil moisture and fluctuating water level.Conclusions: We could clarify the placement of steppe depression vegetation in the system of syntaxonomic units of Europe. The previously described syntaxa of the rank of alliance (Myosuro-Beckmannion eruciformis), suballiance (Galio ruthenici-Caricenion praecocis), and six associations are validated. Two associations and two subassociations are described as a new to science.Taxonomic references: Euro+Med PlantBase (https://www.emplantbase.org), except Mosyakin and Fedoronchuk (1999) forPhlomis scythicaKlokov & Des.-Shost. andTulipa scythicaKlokov & Zoz.Syntaxonomic references: Mucina et al. (2016) for syntaxa from alliance to class level; Dubyna et al. (2019) for associations.Abbreviations: DCA = Detrended Correspondence Analysis; DES = Didukh Ecological Scales; EUNIS = European Nature Information System; EVC = EuroVegChecklist; GIVD = Global Index of Vegetation-Plot Databases; ICPN = International Code of Phytosociological Nomenclature.
